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Coil - "Persistence is All" - Live at the Royal Festival Hall, London, UK (2000-09-19) (AMT)

Coil

"Persistence is All"

Live at the Royal Festival Hall

London, UK

September 19, 2000

AMT

This AMT is three clips recorded off a mobile phone (and converted through ITunes) by Davide Gostoli many years ago. The footage had been circulating for years previously without Gostoli's knowledge or consent, but this version has a few more seconds at the end of "Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil" than the other circulating version.

A PRO video is known to exist and was briefly used on the 2000 documentary Hello Culture but has never surfaced.

Something (Missing)

Higher Beings Command (Instrumental) (Missing)

Amethyst Deceivers (Version 1) (Missing)

Titan Arch (Missing)

1. Blood from the Air (Clip)

2. I Am the Green Child (Clip)

3. Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil (Clip)

“Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil” phase, named after the then most recent Coil release up to that point and the album the setlist is mostly based around, Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil, released in September 12, 2000 to coincide specifically with this first show. “Lowest Common Abominator,” “Beige,” and “Freebase Chakra,” and “Tunnel of Goats” all became sort of combined into the epic suite “Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil,” while “Higher Beings Command” and “I Am the Green Child” were also taken straight off the album. “Something” comes from Musick to Play in the Dark, Vol. 2, released in September 2000, while “Titan Arch” and “Blood from the Air” are revivals of classic Coil songs, off of Love’s Secret Domain, released in 1991, and Horse Rotorvator, released in 1987 respectively. Audiences seemed particularly responsive to “Blood from the Air,” often erupting into applause every time the song would play. Tom Edwards would play on every song except “Something,” “Higher Beings Command,” “Blood from the Air,” and “Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil.”

Coil discarded the fluffy suits in favor of semi-glow-in-the-dark boiler outfits. The band also painted their heads and faces to make it look they suffered from injuries – possibly in reference to John’s self-harming episodes, one of which inspired the “Trauma Edition” of Musick to Play in the Dark Vol. 2. Part of the choreography involved John darting around the stage during “What Kind of Animal Are You?” slowly tramping around the stage during “I Am the Green Child” and banging his head and hands into a big metal sheet during “Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil.” Peter often remained stationary at his computer and synths, while Ossian and Thighpaulsandra would sometimes walk around the stage; Ossian often wore a dazed expression on his face, while Thighpaulsandra remained stoic. Most of the gigs also had naked light bulbs as props hanging from the ceiling, which the band members would often bump into as they moved about the stage; sometimes, they would even intentionally bat at them, occasionally breaking them upon impact with one another.

Debut performances of all songs except “Amethyst Deceivers (Version 1)”

John Balance – harmonizer on “I Am the Green Child,” metal sheet percussion on “Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil”

Peter Christopherson – synths, backing vocals on “Blood from the Air”

Thighpaulsandra

Simon Norris (Ossian Brown) (most gigs from this era lack video/photo evidence that Simon played at these shows; I will just say he did unless I otherwise know for sure that he didn’t)

Tom Edwards – marimba

In virtually every gig during this phase, “Something” and “Higher Beings” smoothly transition into each other, making them sound like one continuous song. For this particular performance, John only sings the “I know why the bird cage sings” lyric once during “Something,” then does not sing on “Higher Beings Command” at all.

John does not employ his voice modulator during “Amethyst Deceivers” and his vocal delivery resembles the first live version.

The backing track to “Titan Arch” starts and plays for a few measures before John announces the song’s title.

Before “Blood from the Air,” John says, “Thank you. This next track’s, uh, from Horse Rotorvator, which is a piece of stolen property, along with Scatology. We want the stolen property returned by the man who stole it, Stevo Pearce. Until he returns it, it’s cursed.” Stevo Pearce ran Some Bizarre Records, which issued unauthorized reissues of the two albums John mentioned earlier that year. Coil made their own reissues in 2001 with new covers that held the written message “Stevo, pay us what you owe us!”

Before “I Am the Green Child,” John says something which sounds like “You can put our stuff if you want over there.” If that is indeed what he says, perhaps he is referring to the metal sheet the band would use during this phase for the song “Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil.” He pauses, then continues, “This is strange; I haven’t been, uh, playing live for 17 years, and to suddenly start singing these songs is truly bizarre.” The song starts, and he says, “I am the green child. This should be fun; let’s go.” He says something I can’t make out after the song.

As “Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil” begins, John says, “This next track is dedicated to, uh, my friend Fritz, who went down and never came back, and it’s dedicated to my friend Russell, who went there, and he came back, and it’s dedicated to my friend David Tibet, who very recently, he went there. ‘Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil.’ Are you ready?” Coil dedicated “A Warning from the Sun” off of the Summer Solstice EP to Fritz as well, who committed suicide shortly before the song’s release. David Tibet is the founder of the band Current 93 and was a friend of Coil’s.

John said of the show, "Thanks to everyone who turned up for the Royal festival hall concert. A few facts. David Sefton and Liz McCudden asked us back after Time Machines as they liked us so much. Atari Teenage Riot were supposed to be on the same bill which I would have love but they couldn't commit. It was great to see Jim Thirwell as I hadn't seen him for 15 or so years.He is a very wonderful and intelligent man who has been extremely influential for many bands.As for all the comments about Foetus as boring rock. I caught a few moments of him doing panther like movements as I was out front in the foyer.Rock is Dead. period. For me and what my hearing brain accepts via my thinking ear anyway.even Marilyn Mansons flirtation with this concept makes it even more laughably dead. I felt more akin to LaMonte Young than to anything else. Our line-up was Tom Edwards on Marimba, a 21 year old 6ft 3" classical percussionist who is also works with Spiritualised, Thighpaulsandra, Sleazy, Mice-Elph and Simon Herne aka Norris. Peter and I designed the video piece especially for the Persistence Is All concert. I designed the stage set and lighting and it was realised by Paddy Farr who is a genius. Tim Sunderland did the sound.Hes worked with Spiritualised and Hawkwind in the past as has Paddy.Gavin Wall was our roadie....COIL have a roadie.He often works for Julian Cope.I designed the costumes along with the fabulous and very hard working David Cabaret. I think all the items from the concert ie the 2 new T-shirts and the CD and two different button badges/ decals and stuff are available from World Serpent up until Christmas. We MAY be playing in Berlin as ELpH in late December. The whole RFH concert was an invocation to Pan. IO PAN!!!!!!!!!!" The eLpH concert never came to be, unfortunately.

Reviews of the show:

http://www.compulsiononline.com/live_coil2.htm

http://freq.org.uk/reviews/coilnectarine-no-9foetus-live/